Judge won't bar reggae rivalry

Tom Dimmick of Dimmick Ranch, site of the Reggae on the River festival, said in a press release late Tuesday that he was "gratified" that a judge had rejected an effort to keep Dimmick and People Productions from staging a rival Reggae Rising event on the same dates.

The Mateel Community Center in Redway, which holds the rights to the popular Reggae on the River event, had asked Humboldt County Superior Court Judge W. Bruce Watson on Monday to issue a temporary restraining order holding Dimmick to a lease agreement with the center.

Dimmick argued that the center's firing of People Productions, longtime producer of the 24-year-old festival, over a financial dispute had voided the lease.

Efforts were unsuccessful Tuesday night to reach Mateel Community Center officials for comment on the ruling or on future plans.

In his press release, Dimmick said, "I hope the court's decision today encourages Mateel to revisit its approach to this dispute. I remain committed to hosting a summer music festival that is safe and beneficial to the community as a whole."

Responding to the community division that has occurred over the conflict, Dimmick said, "I have made several generous settlement offers and remain open to the possibility of working together on this. The bottom line is that we're all neighbors . . ."

At Monday's hearing, the community center's lawyer predicted that the rival Reggae Rising festival would be "hijacking the event," and the center -- which uses Reggae on the River profits to fund its programs -- would "cease to exist."

Dimmick said he will seek to have the remainder of the dispute handled by a private referee, under provisions of his lease with the Mateel.

Meanwhile, both factions are moving forward with ticket sales for festivals on Aug. 3-5 along the Eel River near Piercy in southern Humboldt County.